


with your tiny feet, so i can keep you safe

by timefornothing



Series: a small bump in the road [3]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: AU, F/M, Fatherhood - AU, Fluff, M/M, baby fever, harry's obsessed and it's adorable, idk what tags are even more i'm sorry, liam's a dad, liam's actually a pretty great dad, side larry stylinson - Freeform, the boys are all obsessed too but more lowkey, they aren't really too involved int his chapter tbh sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-03
Updated: 2014-04-03
Packaged: 2018-01-18 01:52:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1410586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timefornothing/pseuds/timefornothing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Liam paced around the waiting room, almost oblivious to the few paparazzi who were outside of the windows at the front of the building. He walked back and forth, grabbing at his hair and the back of his neck and his shoulders and forearms and oh God, what had he done? What did he do? Was Taylor going to be okay?</p><p>He sank down into a chair, face in his hands. He never should have taken him home. He was a horrible father. He had caused this. It was his fault. His son was back there, probably choking to death, and it was all his fault. </p><p> </p><p>or the one where liam's still trying to be a dad and it doesn't really go as planned</p>
            </blockquote>





	with your tiny feet, so i can keep you safe

**Author's Note:**

> okay i know the title doesn't go exactly along with the lyrics but whatevs it works for this part
> 
> woo part three! who would've guessed?
> 
> this gets kinda sad at one point but it's okay i promise
> 
> love you all thank youuuu

Liam dragged a hand along his face, trying and failing to suppress a yawn. He really should have listened to Anna this morning when she told him to take some coffee with him, that just a cup of tea wouldn't be enough. But he had brushed it off, kissed her cheek, told her he'd be fine. Yet here he was, sitting next to Zayn in uncomfortable radio green room chairs, struggling to stay awake.

"You boys ready?" Someone called into the room, and he stood, following Zayn back along the narrow hallway to the recording room. It was a routine he'd done a thousand times, sometimes shoving nearly nine people into a tiny room. Unfortunately, it was only him and Zayn this time: there was no Louis to make awkward situations hilarious and to deflect the questions they weren't really supposed to talk about.

"Hellooooo London! Welcome welcome, hope everyone's still having a great morning. Sam here, and I've got a couple very special guests who swung by this morning! Everyone say hello to Zayn Malik and Liam Payne of One Direction!" The few people in the room clapped and Liam leaned forward to speak.

"Thanks so much for having us here, Sam." Zayn nodded, and Sam jumped straight into the interview.

"So it's been about a week since your last tour ended, correct? And how was that?"

Liam and Zayn alternatively spoke for a bit, telling the same mundane tour stories they were instructed to tell. Unfortunately, they had to leave the funniest ones out, because those involved Louis and Harry and they weren't allowed to talk about those two together. Liam couldn't wait until they got a new management company.

Soon, the questions faded to Zayn and Perrie's wedding plans, and Liam knew it was only a matter of time before they asked about Anna. Simon had made it clear that he didn't care what he said about Anna, but under no circumstances was he allowed to mention Taylor until he had come to the decision of whether he was going to put him up for adoption or not. 

"So, Liam, are you going to have a plus one for their wedding?"

Liam laughed a bit, "Who knows? Might just end up taking Louis or Niall."

The radio host laughed politely, then said, "Well what about the girl you're rumored with? Apparently someone saw you and this mystery girl out shopping together for baby clothes."

Liam glanced out of the corner of his eye to Zayn, who was giving him a smirk. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"S' just funny, mate."

"No it's not."

"What is?" Sam asked, "What's so funny?"

"Well, that mystery girl is actually Perrie's cousin." Liam started, and Zayn's head bent in silent laughter. "So careful what you're thinking. Zayn just might have my throat later if it gets too dirty."

Sam laughed again, then continued, "So, what's going on with her? Is this your new girlfriend?"

If Louis had been here, he would've dropped the word nanny, and that would have been one of his many messes Liam had to clean up. Maybe he was glad it was just him and Zayn. "Ah, no, not really. I mean, we're just good friends."

"But hasn't she been staying at your place?"

Zayn's hand clapped over his mouth to stop him from laughing, and Liam asked casually, "Has she?" Apparently, he put enough innocence in it that Sam stuttered, unable to come up with a follow up question.

"Nah, mate. She's visiting me and Perrie for a few weeks." Zayn leaned forward, still smirking. "She's a pretty cool girl, and we all get on with her really well. So they went out to dinner once, she came over for a few beers, and that's about it." Liam shot Zayn a look of thanks and he nodded, looking back to Sam as they moved on to the last topic for the day. Once they were done, they thanked the host and left, walking out through the crowd of girls that had gathered outside of the station.

"Oh, just so you know, Perrie's planning on coming over for dinner." Zayn told Liam once they were inside, pulling out his phone.

Liam laughed, "Harry told Anna he was coming over. Might as well have the whole crew over. Again." He sighed, looking out the window tiredly.

"Hey, something wrong?" Zayn asked, noticing his expression. Liam shrugged, and Zayn continued, "Hey, come on. They're just excited. You're the first of us to have a kid. It's like Lux, but times twenty, because Taylor's actually one of ours. They just all look at him as their own, too."

Liam nodded, thinking back to the messages he had woken up to this morning. Harry had responded with, _Oh my God, mommy and daddy are finally getting together!!!!! xoxoxo_ while Louis just sent back a perfectly sweet, _So you fucked the nanny?_ Zayn's response actually came from Perrie, who was freaking out because Liam had supposedly stolen her sweet little cousin from her. Niall's response was just a variety of emoji's, including but not limited to: the fist bump, the beer, the winky face, the church, the two people kissing and several babies. He smiled, then replied, "Yeah, yeah. I know. It's just...everything's so different. And it happened so fast, you know?" With another sigh, he tacked on, "Thank God Anna's been there. I would have been a mess all week."

Zayn smirked again, "I need to call your mum, warn her you're falling in love again."

Liam scoffed, "Am not!" Zayn continued smiling at him, and Liam sat back with a pout on his face, "I'm not. She's just been a great help. And maybe we've kissed. So what."

"Mate, that's the look Taylor gave Perrie when he tried to tell her he hadn't eaten all her m&m's."

Liam shoved Zayn away from him, who was laughing even harder. However, Liam couldn't hide the smile from his face, and instead turned to look out the window. He arrived home a few minutes later and was greeted with an enthusiastic Taylor, who was _so_ excited to start watching the old Batman cartoons. Liam, once he had changed back into his sweatpants, pulled them up and started them on Netflix while Anna slipped out to go do grocery shopping with Lou.

Around two in the afternoon, there was a knock at the door. Liam frowned. Had Anna forgotten her key? He moved Taylor off of his lap, who completely ignored him and continued watching Batman and Robin chase after the Penguin. Opening the door, his eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Danielle?"

"Hey to you, too, Liam." She snorted, giving him a look. "What, did you forget I was coming by?"

With a hurried glance over his shoulder, Liam nodded, turning back around. "Yeah, I guess so." Then he glanced down and broke into a smile, kneeling as he reached for the dog. "Loki! How have you been?" The dog let out a yip, jumping forward, making Danielle laugh. Liam grinned, rubbing Loki's head as he continued to bark and lick at his chin.

"Dad?"

Liam turned around, "Yeah bud?" But Taylor had stopped talking. He was looking at the doorway with wide eyes, holding on to the arm of the couch. Liam stood, and Danielle raised her eyebrows at him. "Dad?"

"Um." Liam looked helplessly between the two, then glanced out in the hallway. "Here, come inside." He pulled Danielle in and quickly closed the door, then bent down to take Loki off his leash. "Taylor, bud, this is my dog Loki. Why don't you play with him by the TV?" Loki had already sprinted over to him, and Taylor squealed, sitting down heavily when the dog proceeded to lick his face as well. Liam, with a helpless look, turned back to Danielle.

Her eyebrows were still raised, and she crossed her arms as she repeated, "Dad?"

"Uh, want some tea?" Liam offered, forcing a smile.

Danielle shook her head. "You, mister, have some explaining to do. You have a kid?"

Liam sighed, guiding her over to the table. "Uh, yeah. I didn't know until about a week ago, actually." She sat with a confused expression, still watching him warily. Liam sat across from her, hands clenched tightly in his lap as he tried to explain. "Um, basically, it's because of a girl I had a thing with about three years ago. She never told me, and then she passed away two weeks ago." He finished quietly. "Taylor had no other living relatives, so I'm watching him for now."

"For now?" She asked, and Liam nodded.

"Yeah, he might go up for adoption. Haven't decided yet."

"Are you insane?" Danielle hissed, obviously keeping her voice low for Taylor's benefit. Not that he would have noticed, he was still on the ground with Loki. "Liam, that kid is yours. You can't just give him up like that!"

"But, Dani," Liam objected, "I'm not cut out for raising a kid yet. I'm only 20 years old, for Christ's sake. And the media is constantly watching me. How could I raise a kid under those circumstances?"

"Liam, I think you missed what I said." She narrowed her eyes. "He's _yours._ He's already been here for, what did you say, a week? And then you're just going to up and tear him out of his new home just like that? Just because you don't think you're cut out for the job? Do you want him to lose his father along with his mother?"

Liam froze, staring at the pissed expression on her face. He looked to the ground, unable to hold her gaze. Leave it to Danielle to tell it like it is and make him feel like an idiot.

"You do have a point." He mumbled, and she snorted, leaning back.

"Damn straight." She watched Taylor for a minute, then asked, "You said he's three?" Liam nodded, and she said, "Uh, we started dating about three years ago. Did you...?" 

Liam looked up, eyes wide, "Oh, no. No, I'd never cheat, Dani. It was someone I knew right before I met you, don't worry." She nodded, seeming to calm down a bit, then said softly, "Look, I imagine the boys all know by now, right?" He nodded, and she continued, "And I bet they've been totally overbearing with it, and way too helpful. Am I right?" Liam laughed and nodded, looking back up to her.

She smiled at him, setting a hand on top of his. "See? They've always had your back, Li. And they always will. If you're ever feeling like it's too much, go to them. They always know how to help." He nodded, sitting back against his chair with a sigh.

The door opened, and Daniele sat up sharply, a disgusted look crossing her face, "Oh God, that's not Sophia, is it?"

"What? No." Liam shook his head with a laugh, "She's not coming back here anytime soon after that mess." Danielle visibly relaxed, and then he heard Anna call, "Taylor! Who've you got there?"

"His name's Loki!" Taylor squeaked, trying to lay on said dog. Liam heard her shoes across the floor, setting the bags on the bar, then turned and jumped when she saw them sitting at the table. Liam smirked, covering up his smile with his hand. 

"Oh! Um, hi." She came forward, offering her hand to Danielle, who had stood. "I'm Anna."

"Danielle." She smirked, then looked to Liam. "So this is the mystery woman from the radio interview this morning. Seems like she's come over for more than just a couple beers if she's got a key." Anna looked to Liam, who blushed, then tried to change the subject. Had Anna not listened to the interview?

"Hey, where's Lou? Thought she was coming back with you."

Anna shook her head, moving back to the groceries. "Nah, she had to get back to Lux. Apparently we took a bit too long getting coffee and shopping." She began putting the groceries away, and Liam looked back to Danielle, who had the same damn smirk that Zayn and his mom had.

"What?" He whispered, and she came over, whispering back, "Liam, we dated for about two years. Yeah? In all that time, never did I ever go get coffee and go shopping with Lou, nor did I put your groceries away for you." She patted his arm, winking as she added, "You bagged a good one. Keep me updated, yeah?" As his face fell she walked away, going over to hug Loki one last time. She waved to Taylor then tossed a, "Nice to meet you!" over to shoulder to Anna before closing the door behind her. 

"Who's Danielle?" Anna asked, popping a pretzel in her mouth and moving on to putting fruit in the basket.

"Ex-girlfriend. We kind of share a dog, although she mostly takes him when I'm on tour." He answered awkwardly, going to stand by the bar. "She was bringing Loki back today and I completely forgot about it."

"You need to invest in a calendar." Anna commented, "That's two days in a row you've forgotten important things."

He smiled at her, "Who needs a calendar when I have you?" She stuck her tongue out at him, and Taylor called, "Dad! Next episode's starting!" He shot her one last smile, then turned and went back to sit on the couch, Taylor and Loki both climbing onto his lap. They had taken a quick liking to each other, and Taylor told him probably three times how he had always wanted a puppy.

As Anna had predicted, everyone turned up for dinner that night, although Harry had the decency to bring a side dish this time. Taylor excitedly told everyone about his new dog, and gave Louis and Zayn the drawings he had done for them this morning. Harry squealed again when he saw it, and Louis only rolled his eyes. The group finished off the cake and leftovers from last night, dispersing again around ten, after Taylor had gone to bed. Once everyone had gone again, Liam grabbed Anna by the hips, this time their kiss going further than it had the previous night. They made their way up the stairs, Liam playfully tickling Anna every time they stopped to take a breath. He pulled her down on the bed, smiling up at her. She smirked down at him, "Didn't know this was one of the benefits of being a nanny for Liam Payne." He rolled his eyes and pulled her to him, kissing her as they rolled over on the bed. Liam didn't let it get too far, however, unsure of where he wanted to take this.

Sure, Anna was great. She was great with Taylor, she was funny, Loki loved her, his friends loved her--but how much longer was she going to be around for? Her vacation ended in a couple weeks, and then she was off, back to some little town that was too far away for Liam's liking. He wanted her to stay forever. Honestly, she had made this entire process easier. It was so much better when you had someone learning with you, both of you bouncing questions off of each other and trying to figure out what was the best way to handle a situation. She supported him when he was unsure, and was always eager to shoot him a smile. When he had told Harry this tonight, all he had said was, "Sounds to me like you loooove her, and you're ready to settle down again. But you're the only one who's gonna know the real answer to that." So, yeah, thanks for the cryptic answer, Styles. That helped. Not.

The next night, after more making out and just as Liam was about to fall asleep, he thought he heard someone yelling for him. He opened his eyes in the dark bedroom, blinking wearily as he listened. When he didn't hear it again, he settled back into the bed, pulling Anna closer under the blankets. Then it happened again, louder.

"Dad!"

With a jolt, he realized it was Taylor yelling for him. Just as he was sitting up, his door swung open, and Taylor was peeking through, sniffling.

"Taylor? What's wrong bud?"

Taylor wiped his nose, holding tightly onto Reuben. "I had a bad dream."

"Aw, Tay." Anna said, sitting up as well. Liam looked at her, an apologetic smile on his face. He didn't mean to wake her up. "Do you uh, wanna sleep in here?" Liam's eyebrows shot up in surprise, then he relaxed. That was a parent thing to say. Kids sleep in their parent's beds when they're scared. It's normal.

Eagerly, Taylor nodded, then ran forward, jumping up and climbing in between them. Liam smiled as Taylor tucked himself into his side, still sniffing. "Hey, hey, bud. It's okay. We gotcha." He felt Anna reach across both of them, hand settling on Liam's chest. "See? Anna and I have got you in a sandwich. Nothing can get you now." Taylor giggled, and before they knew it, he was asleep. Liam relaxed, settling his hand on top of Anna's. Despite how nervous he had been about the "domestic" life and how scary some people had made it seem, this past week had made it seem okay. Sure, there were the scary parts, like the Sharpie incident and the time Taylor had let himself onto the balcony, but it was the moments like Taylor's birthday, when he had been smiling so much it had made Liam's heart hurt, that it had seemed okay. Watching that expression on Taylor's face and seeing it reflected on Anna's had made it all worthwhile.

 

*****

 

"Are you sure you can handle this?"

"Anna, I can watch my own son."

She pouted, "Well, yeah. But it's only ever been for a few hours. I'm gonna be gone all night. I've always made dinner for you guys, too."

It was the end of their third week together, Saturday night, and Anna was going out to a play that night with her mom, Perrie, Perrie's mom, and their siblings. It was now five, and she had to leave and wouldn't be back until well after midnight. Liam thought she looked gorgeous, dressed in a nice black dress, tights and heels, her hair and makeup done unlike what Liam had seen in the past.

"Anna, we'll be fine, I promise. Us boys can take care of ourselves, right, Taylor?" He looked over his shoulder to where Taylor nodded quickly, mouth full of apple juice. He had recently found it super exciting to see how long he could hold it in his cheeks for before someone made him spit it out. Thanks, Uncle Niall.

Anna bit her lip, still unsure, and Liam pushed her towards the door. "Come on, you're gonna be late. We'll be fine. I did used to live on my own, you know. So I do know how to kick some things."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Microwave meals and soup don't count."

Liam laughed, pushing her out the door. "Ah, get out of here. Go enjoy yourself! Tell everyone I say hello!" She waved goodbye one more time, then stepped onto the elevators, and Liam smiled at her until the doors closed. Turning around, he rubbed his hands together. "Alright, T. How do you feel about chicken nuggets?"

Taylor's response was to spit the apple juice out, and Liam sighed, wiping it off of his face as Taylor started giggling uncontrollably. This was going to be a long night.

In the end, Liam ended up burning the chicken nuggets. He didn't know how, he followed all of the instructions to the tee. So, with a forlorn look at Taylor, he asked, "Do you like Chinese?" They ordered take out and sat at the table, coloring until the delivery man got there around seven. Liam ate his shrimp lo mien, laughing at Taylor, who was struggling to keep his rice on his fork.

"Here, bud, use a spoon." Liam told him, feeling bad for laughing. He helped show Taylor how to scoop it and keep some of his chicken on there as well (Taylor really liked the Teriyaki) and soon they were munching in silence.

"Dad? What are those?" Taylor asked, squinting at what Liam had on his fork.

Liam looked, then smirked. "That's shrimp. Have you never had it?" Taylor shook his head, and Liam guided his fork forward. "Here, try it. They're my favorite." Taylor opened his mouth and accepted it, munching and nodding. "Can I have another?" Liam gave him three more, then smirked and told him to eat his own dinner, and Taylor went back to his chicken, singing loudly a song he had heard on Disney Channel.

A few minutes later, as Liam was cleaning up and throwing the trash away, he heard Taylor coughing. Concerned, he turned around, "You good bud?"

Taylor face was red, and he was continually scratching at his cheek. "Dad, my throat hurts." He let out another cough, and then another, and another. Liam's eyes widened as Taylor continued coughing, face getting redder and redder. 

"Taylor? Taylor?" Liam asked desperately, grabbing onto his son's shoulders as he continued coughing. In a panic, Liam grabbed his phone and dialed 999.

"999, what's your emergency?"

"Hi, my son won't stop coughing." Liam said quickly, trying to get Taylor to get some water. "I don't know what's going on, but his face is really red and he said his throat hurts and he won't stop coughing."

"Is he able to speak?" 

"Uh, no." Liam answered, worriedly watching him. "No, he can't."

"Sir, we have your location. Unlock your door and the paramedics should be there in just a couple of minutes. I need you to stay on the line with me, alright, sir?" Liam nodded, yes, okay, he'd stay on the line. He followed her instructions, checking to see if there was anything in Taylor's mouth, and apologizing nearly a hundred times to the tiny boy. The paramedics were there in just two minutes, picking Taylor up and taking him to the hospital. Liam rode in the back with them, shooting a quick text to Anna that said, _Taylor's on his way to the hospital, not sure what's wrong. Call me when you can. xx_ The paramedics got him started on an IV, saying something about anaphylactic shock that Liam didn't understand at all. Once they arrived there, they explained he was having a severe allergic reaction, and left Liam in the waiting room while they took Taylor to the back, who hadn't stopped coughing and whose face was now almost purple.

Liam paced around the waiting room, almost oblivious to the few paparazzi who were outside of the windows at the front of the building. He walked back and forth, grabbing at his hair and the back of his neck and his shoulders and forearms and oh God, what had he done? What did he do? Was Taylor going to be okay?

He sank down into a chair, face in his hands. He never should have taken him home. He was a horrible father. He had caused this. It was his fault. His son was back there, probably choking to death, and it was all his fault. 

"Liam?"

He looked up just in time to see Anna come sliding around the corner in her tights, heels in hand and makeup smudged under her eyes. She took one look at him and her face fell, running over to him. "Liam? Liam, why are you crying? What's wrong? I came as soon as I saw your text."

Liam wiped at his eyes, unaware as to when the tears had started. He sat up straighter, letting Anna put her arm around him as her eyes searched his face for an answer.

"Um, Taylor's having an allergic reaction to something. Pretty bad, I think. They said ana...anaphil something. Shock."

"Anaphylactic shock." Anna nodded, wiping at her own tears. "Well, what happened? Is he okay? Where is he?"

"They took him back to some room." Liam said, looking back down at his hands in his lap. "I don't know. I didn't ask. We were just eating dinner and I let him have some of mine, and then he wouldn't stop coughing. His face was nearly purple by the time we got here."

Her hand moved to cover her mouth, looking down at the ground as well. Liam took a deep breath, "I'm so sorry, Anna. It's all my fault." She stiffened next to him, and he continued, "I'm so sorry. I told you I could handle it, and I can't. I'm so sorry, I'm a horrible father, they never should have trusted me with him." A tear slipped out of his eye again as his voice caught on the last word, and Anna forcefully put a hand on each shoulder, making him look at her.

"Liam, don't you ever say that."

He looked up at her through watery eyes, finding her stare at him with an earnestness he had never seen. "Liam, I don't want to hear you say that ever again. How could you have known? It wasn't listed on his medical files when we looked through them. No one knew, so how could you have known? You're an amazing father, Liam. He looks up to you so much, and he loves you even more than that. You've done everything you could with the situation at hand, and I personally think you're a better father than half the men out there. So don't you dare tell me you're a bad father when I know you love that boy as much as I do, if not more."

Liam stared at her, heart in his throat. He was moved by her words, and he could slowly feel himself calming down, even as he asked, "Really? You mean that?"

"I do. I really do." She told him with a soft smile, tears filling up her own eyes. One spilled, taking a trail of mascara with it, and she said, "You're so good with him. He loves you so much, Li. Don't you worry. I don't think he's suddenly going to hate you because you slipped up one time. In fact, I'm willing to bet he's in there thinking about when he can watch Batman next with you right now. He's gonna be okay, Li."

Liam laughed, wiping at his tears as he reached for her, drawing her into his chest. He held her for a moment, smoothing down her hair before saying, "You know, I think shoes are required in hospitals."

Anna snorted, moving her head up to kiss his cheek, "Couldn't run fast enough in my heels, so I just took 'em off." She sniffed one more time, then sat up, wiping at her face. "I better call Perrie, tell her everything's okay. I bet she's worried sick, I didn't say much before sprinting out of there because my baby was in the hospital." Liam laughed, kissing her cheek. Her baby? 

"Well, tell them your baby's going to be fine, because I'm sure he will be."

"Mr. and Mrs. Payne, I'm assuming?"

Liam and Anna stood up, Anna saying, "Uh, just Mr., actually. I'm just Anna."

The doctor raised his brows, "Oh alright. Sorry. Well, I wanted to let you know that Taylor's going to be just fine. He had a severe allergic reaction, but we've got him stabilized now." Anna breathed a sigh of relief, sagging against Liam's side as the doctor continued, "We want to keep him here for another hour or so, just to make sure he's alright, and then you're all free to go."

"Can we see him?" Liam asked, rubbing Anna's shoulder through her jacket. The doctor nodded with a curt, "Follow me," and led them back along the prsitine hallways until they stopped outside of a small room. Anna opened the door, face immediately softening as she saw Taylor. 

"Tay, hey buddy." She crept forward, and Liam was unhappy with how tired Taylor looked. He lay back against the pillow, eyes droopy, but his grin lit up when he saw them. 

"Hey!" He grinned, pointing to his arm. "Look, they gave me a spiderman band aid!"

"That's so cool, Tay!" Anna told him, sitting down on the edge of his bed and reaching forward to brush the curls back from his sweaty forehead. She looked at him, concern clearly in her eyes. "How are you feeling?"

"Sleepy." He said, yawning as if he had reminded himself. "My throat feels funny. Hurts." Anna frowned, leaning forward to kiss his forehead. Liam smiled, seeing how Anna completely ignored that Taylor had an obvious rash on his face. Was it contagious? Regardless, it seemed not to matter to her as she kept rubbing his forehead.

"His throat is gonna be sore for a while." The doctor told them, smiling as he saw Liam put a hand on Anna's shoulder. "He was coughing pretty hard, so keep him on an easy diet for the next few days. Nothing too hard on him."

"Hear that, T?" Liam said, giving his son an excited look. "That means more applesauce!" Taylor gave a weak cheer, and Anna leaned forward to kiss him again, keeping her gaze locked on his face as she pulled away.

"He's going to be pretty tired." The doctor continued telling them, handing over a paper for Liam to sign. "We had to give him a pretty high dose of antihistamines, so he should sleep pretty soundly tonight, but he'll be fine by tomorrow. Give him a Benadryl in the afternoon if his throat is still bothering him. Put some hydrocortisone on the rash on his face, and that should go away in another day or so." 

Liam looked over at Anna, unsure, and she nodded with a smile. "You have some upstairs in a bin in your bathroom." Liam shook hands with the doctor, who then left, and Liam put his arms around Anna's shoulders, leaning forward. "Sorry about the shrimp, bud."

"Can I have some when we get home?"

"No, sweetie." Anna laughed lightly, "You're allergic to it, you can't eat it. Otherwise we'll have to bring you back here." Taylor pouted, then looked up to Liam again. 

"Can we watch Batman?"

Anna pinched Liam's elbow, and he smiled. "Yeah, we can. We'll watch it all day tomorrow."

"And eat applesauce?"

"And eat applesauce." Liam confirmed, a broad grin on his face. Relief was slowly seeping through his body, relaxing the tense muscles. Thank God Taylor was going to be okay. Again, Anna had been right. 

An hour later, they had the all clear, and as they got downstairs, Liam stopped, sighing when he looked outside. Paparazzi absolutely covered the windows, all of them trying to get a picture. Liam pushed everyone back around the corner again, pulling out his phone to call Paul.

"Hey, so we've got a bit of a situation here..."

Eventually, Paul and a couple police officers were able to make a path, and they led the small group out. Anna kept Taylor's face pressed to her chest, trying to shield his eyes from the camera flashes. Once they were in the car, Anna's eyes were wide, looking at the people that still surprised them. Paul snorted, and Liam looked over to him.

"Simon's gonna have a field day with this."

Liam groaned and fell back into his seat. "Good, can't wait to get the call."

It didn't take long. His phone rang at 8 o clock sharp the next morning, signaling the beginning of Simon's anger. He had been awake all night while Anna and Taylor slept upstairs. Apparently, blogs and magazines and websites were just lighting up, trying to figure out who this girl was and who this boy was and why were they all at the hospital? Liam took the call from Simon into his bedroom, talking about what they should do for nearly an hour before coming to the decision that Liam had to decide right now if he wanted to keep Taylor or not.

Did he? 

Taylor had wormed his way into every part of Liam's life, his tiny giggle and drawings nearly smothering Liam's home. He looked for him around every corner, asked his opinion on nearly everything, and even found himself looking forward and thinking about taking him on tour. Sometimes, the plans weren't even that big. He couldn't wait to take Taylor to the park for the first time. He was excited to take him to a family Christmas, to look for eggs on Easter next week. Anna was there every step of the way, teasing Liam about how loving he had become towards the boy. Not that Liam minded, he took it as a compliment. Taylor meant everything to him.

"I think I'm going to keep him." He told Simon, voice weighted. Holy shit, he had a son. He was going to have a son for the rest of forever. Taylor was his, and now he'd get to experience all the plans he had for him. Just the thought brought a broad grin to his face.

"Good, I'm glad." Simon replied curtly, then continued, "Now we just need to figure out how the best way is to present this to the media. I think we should have one of the other boys, if not all, come in with you on this. Maybe a press conference? I'm thinking..."

The planning took another half an hour, some of it even conference calling the other boys, scheduling it for next Tuesday. Once everything was finalized, he hung up and went back downstairs, Anna already sitting there with his reheated cup of tea.

"How bad was it?" She asked sympathetically, and Liam sighed, tossing his phone onto the table and sitting down heavily.

"Not as bad as it could have been, I guess. I gotta hold a press conference next week, though."

"Ew." Anna scrunched up her nose, "That doesn't sound like fun."

"No, no it doesn't." They sat in silence for a few minutes, both of them watching Taylor and Loki. Liam finished the tea in one more gulp, then stood. "I'm gonna shower real quick, try and relax." She nodded, turning back to watch Taylor carefully as he played with his toys while Loki watched on.

He stood under the hot water, letting it wash his worries down the drain. God, he couldn't wait to see the look on Anna's face when he told her he had decided to keep Taylor. Would that mean that Anna would stay as well? She had been talking this week about applying to a few jobs here in the city. Maybe she'd even move in! Not that she wasn't already. He smirked. Anna _had_ actually been living here. Would it be that big of a difference? Maybe he should ask her to be his girlfriend first. Yeah, that'd probably be best. His smile grew broader, drunk on the possibilities and ideas presenting themselves. Maybe he'd propose to her sometime soon. Taylor did say he had wanted a new mom.

He walked downstairs fifteen minutes later, scratching at his beard. He really needed to shave before the press conference. It was oddly quiet, and he looked up, seeing the TV was turned off. Loki was laying on the couch, and he turned to Anna, who was still sitting at the table with her arms crossed. "Where's Taylor?"

"Nap."

Okay, that was odd of her to give such a short answer. Usually she'd tell him all about how she got Taylor to willingly take a nap. He walked closer, and that was when he realized what was laying on the table in front of her. It was the forms for adoption, all spread out, that he had completely forgotten about. How did she find them? Didn't he put them somewhere last night?

"Jenna Karrin called for you." Anna said shortly, not once looking up from the papers in front of her. "She wanted to know when you were planning on mailing the adoption papers to her."

Liam's brow furrowed, "Um, I wasn't?"

"'I wasn't' he says." She snorted, mocking him as she finally looked up. "If you weren't planning on putting him up for adoption, why are all the papers signed?" She held up paper after paper, pointing at his signature. "Says right here that you're legally giving up guardianship. Oh, this one says you want visiting rights, but undefined because of a busy work schedule. Oh, and this one says you don't want his mom mentioned around him by his new parents."

"Anna, wait--" Liam interrupted, walking forward.

"No, you wait." She said, voice low so she didn't wake Taylor upstairs. She stood up, eyes locked in an angry stare. "How could you? Is this because of what happened yesterday? You slip up one time, and you think that's it, you're done?" She laughed bitterly, plopping the thick folder down in front of him. "News flash, Liam, parentings a lot harder than that. What about when he falls and breaks his arm for the first time? Or when he loses a tooth? Or when you can't make it to a t-ball game?" Liam was watching her, chest tight as he saw the tears reach her eyes. So she had been planning for the long term as well.

"I'm so disappointed that you would consider, even for a second, adoption." She whispered, recrossing her arms and looking down to the floor. "Did you know he's called me mom maybe, four times now?" Liam looked to the floor, stomach coiling with guilt. "And I thought to myself, maybe, just maybe, you were planning on keeping him. He's not even related to me, but I would never in a million years consider giving him away. I'm so, so disappointed in you, Liam." 

He was silent, still looking at the floor out of shame. Now he remembered when he had signed him. Late last night, after Anna had fallen asleep holding Taylor in his bed, he had found them on the shelves by his front door. Still feeling guilty about Taylor's allergic reaction and convinced that someone could do a better job than him, he had pulled them out and looking them over, filling them out where it needed and signing the papers. It had been more of a self-punishment thing than anything else, he really wasn't planning on sending them in. 

But Anna didn't know that. To her, it looked like he was just another loser dad, ready to quit at the first sign of trouble. And he absolutely, totally deserved that. Because he had been, last night. He had been ready to run. He had been that quitter, and a quitter like him deserved this. So he didn't defend himself, just stood there and took it as she told him she was disappointed. If he was honest with himself, he was, too.

"Good luck at your press conference."

Her quiet comment pulled him out of his self-pity party, and he looked up to find that she had gathered her purse and coat. Before he could say anything else, anything such as _I was thinking about proposing to you only fifteen minutes ago,_ she was out the door and it was closing, and he was left alone in the too quiet apartment.

Slowly, he walked over to the table, picking up the final adoption form. There was a tear stain next to the signature, one he was sure wasn't from him. He sat heavily, dropping the paper and putting his head in his hands. What had he done wrong? And not for the first time, he was left with a fleeting memory of blue eyes, _bright blue eyes_ , leaving him behind.

**Author's Note:**

> CLIFFHANGER
> 
> im so so so sorry if i caused any emotional distress
> 
> i know im not okay right now
> 
> part four should be up soonish, i promise
> 
> love you all thanks so much for reading and leaving kudos, you da best <3


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